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Obama's budget meant as challenge

Obama is promising to construct an economy 'built to last.' | AP Photo

To be sure there are also small surprises. After a series of costly accidents, including a crude oil leak into the Yellowstone River last summer in Montana, the administration appears intent on putting more money into pipeline safety. The new budget proposes an estimated $276 million for the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, including a 60 percent increase in PHMSA’s pipeline safety accounts to hire more inspectors and standardize state pipeline programs.

That said, this is an election year, and Obama treads carefully when cutting government benefits or raising taxes as part of his longer-range 10-year deficit-reduction plan.

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Individual tax reform accounts for $1.5 trillion in revenue savings, but the burden falls almost entirely on the wealthy, ignoring the fact that many middle-income families are paying a much lower effective rate than when tax reform was last completed under the Ronald Reagan. Even in the case of transportation, the administration appears to duck the question of raising gas taxes to pay for new roads and instead relies on war savings as a plug.

With a new farm bill in the offing this year, Obama is much more aggressive in demanding long overdue cuts given the high price of commodities in recent years. But he is hesitant still to make big structural changes in Medicare and Medicaid, and shows an appetite for new mandatory spending programs that can be counted outside the appropriations caps set last summer.

The community college initiative, which the president will speak to Monday morning, has been pegged at $8 billion over three years — all outside discretionary appropriations. A second Home Stars proposal to improve the energy efficiency of homes is described as carrying a $6 billion price tag.

Until the budget documents are released, a full accounting is not possible. But the administration is estimating that even with this new spending, the president will be able to show a net 10-year savings of about $278 billion from nonhealth mandatory programs like farm subsidies or retirement benefits owed federal workers.

But Obama is also breaking new ground by plowing back about half of the savings he attributes to reduced military spending as a result of the U.S. withdrawal from Iraq and his plan to bring home American forces from Afghanistan as well.

Overseas Contingency Operations or OCO funds totaled $145.9 billion for the two wars in 2009 and are expected to drop to about $96.7 billion in 2013 — a one-third reduction. Over Republican objections, the White House would argue these are genuine savings — about half of which Obama will use to help finance a major six-year, 50 percent increase in transportation spending.

Gas tax revenues will be sufficient to cover an estimated $261 billion of the cost, meaning an estimated $231 billion would be attributed to war or OCO savings.

Before the usual suspects start whining about the debt and deficits. I would like to point out that if we don't invest in things like education or health care...we won't have to worry about our future. Every kid in China is studying to be an engineer and scientist, while we are here worrying about community college investments.

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And for those who are truly concerned about these deficits, let's trim the Pentagon...we got Bin Laden, why are we still fighting...or has this turned into a pi ss ing contest? Let's cut NASA...what are we afraid of... E.T?

A country that does not invest in its own people will not have a future to worry about.

Individual tax reform accounts for $1.5 trillion in revenue savings, but the burden falls almost entirely on the wealthy, ignoring the fact that many middle-income families are paying a much lower effective rate than when tax reform was last completed under the Ronald Reagan.

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over 1,000 days and counting since obama signed a budget, doesn't politico or any of the left wing press mention it, no. it's about Obama's bold vision, even though his own party voted down his vision last time 97-0. Even when the dems owned the house, senate, and white house they couldn't pass a budget, now with 2/3 of government Senate and White House they still can't get it done.

Pathetic. But lets hear about obama's bold vision to destroy this country with chinese debt!

A poll out yesterday, keeps Florida in Obamas camp, by even larger margins than before.

So is Ohio.

PA is the only state to drift over the line to the GOP by a point or 2.

pss- Mo. is tied at 45% to 45%.

Michigan and New Hampshire go for Obama. NOT Mitt.

Iowa and New Mexico aren't even swing states really.

Nevada and Colorado are weak Dem leans. Have stayed that way for a while now.

I wish they would give use more current data on them.

Keep in mind to win the White House the GOP needs to win most of the swing states because they have vewer solid red electorial votes than the Democrates. Obama can win by just picking up a couple of these.

Democrats have NO EXCUSE for not passing a budget! Your time is UP. Next! This proves that you cannot trust what Democrats say - they lie. And they are all about taxing the hard won earnings of struggling American families and spending those earnings on things like "Midnight Basketball".

He has been saying this all 4 years! He had a dem majority in the Senate, and a filibuster proof majority in the Senate for two of those years. The dems could have passed anything that they wanted to, and they DID pass what was important to them. Didn't they promise these things would get done with the almost trillion dollar stimulus? I know Obama hopes that because the stimulus was early on in his administration, that you will forget. Unfortunately for Obama, he continues to remind us by promising the same things over and over again. Even if you are a hard core dem, wouldn't this kinda tick you off that he continues to make the same promises over and over again, but never does them? Are you going to fall for this again? The comments so far say you aren't going to fall for it.

Obama and his initiatives are losers. Even his own sycophants wouldn't vote for it in his first two years.If Republicans had proposed programs as far out as Obummers the press would have howled. No condemnation from the press with Obummer. SILENCE! Thank God most of the populace are waking up.

Obama and his initiatives are losers. Even his own sycophants wouldn't vote for it in his first two years.If Republicans had proposed programs as far out as Obummers the press would have howled. No condemnation from the press with Obummer. SILENCE! Thank God most of the populace are waking up.